The Twelfth Annual Symposium on Geriatrics and Gerontology, "Total Quality Management: Improving Geriatric Care in the 21st Century," is proposed as a means of informing an interdisciplinary audience of development of a consensus statement on the concept of Total Quality Management (TQM) and its application to elderly people in different health care settings. Prior to the conference, a preliminary consensus statement on TQM will be developed, using the Delphi technique, by a panel of nationally known experts in quality assurance, academic and community geriatrics and allied health professions. The results will be presented and discussed at the initial session of the symposium. Invited speakers in the following sessions will present information from case studies on application of the concept and methods of TQM and other approaches to quality assurance to care of elderly persons in community settings, the hospital, and long term care facilities. The last session will attempt to reach a final consensus statement of TQM which modifies the preliminary consensus statement based on information presented in the content sessions. The symposium will be held September 20-22, 1993 in St. Louis, Missouri. Co-sponsors are the St. Louis VA Medical Center (GRECC, HSR&D, and Continuing Education Center), Saint Louis University (Schools of Medicine, Nursing, and Public Health), and the SSM Rehabilitation Institute.